ABSTRACT
The relationship between human papillomavirus (HPV) and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma has been established. However, data from Ecuador is limited. The objective of this study was to characterize HPV infection in Ecuadorian patients with tongue cancer. Fifty-three patients with tongue cancer treated at the tertiary referral center Sociedad de Lucha Contra el Cancer (SOLCA), Guayaquil, between 2006 and 2011 were identified. Linear Array® HPV genotyping was used to identify the presence and types of HPV on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded biopsy samples from these patients with tongue cancer. HPV was identified in 42% (n=22) and high-risk (HR) HPV in 17% (n=9), with 18 different HPV types identified. The most common types were the HR HPV 33 (14%) and low-risk HPV 67 (14%), followed by the HR HPV 58. More than one HPV type was identified in 27.3% of cases. HPV 33 was frequently associated with other HPV types. No statistically significant differences in gender (P=0.58) and age (P=0.12) were observed between HPV-positive and HPV-negative cases. HPV was identified in almost half of the tongue cancer samples, with subtypes 33 and 67 being the most common. This suggested that HPV played an important role in this disease in the population studied. Given these results, current HPV vaccines may not be as effective in reducing tongue cancer rates in this population.
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Adult , Middle Aged , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Papillomaviridae/isolation & purification , Tongue Neoplasms/epidemiology , Tongue Neoplasms/virology , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/epidemiology , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/virology , DNA, Viral , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/pathology , Pilot Projects , Polymerase Chain Reaction , Retrospective Studies , Risk Factors , Paraffin Embedding , Risk Assessment , Papillomavirus Infections/epidemiology , Papillomavirus Infections/virology , Ecuador/epidemiologyABSTRACT
No other clinical entity has attached more attention now-a-day than those precipitated by the infection with a Hemorrhagic Fever Virus. Potentially caused by Arena, Bunya, Flavi, and Filoviradae, only the latter has had such a major impact throughout the world. Two major genuses have been recognized since they become evident for the first time in 1967, the single-species Marburg, and the 3-species-Ebola (E. zaire, sudan and reston). With the exception of the 2 outbreaks of E. reston (Washington, USA 1989-1993), all of them have taken place in Africa, where the virus is still hiding among the wild-life of the Tropical Rain Forest. Currently (in April 1995) the reemergence of Ebola virus has once more proven its fatality, leaving around 170 deaths in Zaire, 250 miles from its capital, Kinshasa. There is worldwide alert, sponsored by the CDC in Atlanta, the World Health Organization and the authorities in Zaire regarding its potential spreading to naive regions, in and out of Africa. The characteristic clinical picture of a viral hemorrhagic fever has no match. After a 2-21 days incubation period a viral-like illness develops. As days go by, symptoms worsen, and by the 7th day, a severe and diffuse bleeding tendency ensues. The individual's death is the most likely outcome in the great majority of cases. As a lethal virus, without an available treatment and a possible airborne-route of transmission, Ebola virus will always be considered a persistent threat to the global health